Repercussions
by Ozymandeos
Summary: Long ago, the Crystal Gems were forced to make a difficult choice. They've lived with the consequences for thousands of years, guided by their leader Rose Quartz. But now she's gone, and Steven has unknowingly struck the death knell for the semi-peace they've lived in. As old Gems reawaken and the fires of war begin to brew anew, is anyone safe?
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: Yeah… watching Ocean Gem, I just got this idea I can't shake. It takes backseat to my original projects, but expect an update here every once in awhile. If I get support for it, anyway. Anyway, on with the story.**

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><p><em>Galaxy Warp <em>

We never should have come here. That was the only thought I could come up with, looking across at the chaos below. The night was awash in light, ringing with shouts and screams as the armies below clashed in a bloody conflict, the likes of which we hadn't seen in a thousand years. And there was nothing I could do. Not a soul amongst the two sides below would listen to me, and all were of the opinion that anyone not with them was against them. Even an Elder such as I had no influence in this war. It was a nightmare, and I didn't dare risk getting involved. I wasn't selfish, but I didn't have the altruistic drive of others who'd lost their lives trying to stop the conflict.

I wasn't the only one watching from the sidelines. From my perch atop the cliff, buried in shadows the same color as my gems, I could see a few Gems watching like I was. Some might have been opportunistic scavengers, the darker dregs of Gem society who sank to such depths that they would scavenge the dead. Others might have wanted to stop the fighting, but didn't know how. And some might just be waiting for the fighting to stop so they could go home. I knew some Gems were burnt out on the conflict and just wanted to get back home to our dying world.

Nobody noticed me, hidden as I was, as the battle wound down. The massive crystal platform of the only transporter capable of taking us back home was painted in all colors of the rainbow by the blood of the fallen, and shards from shattered gems crunched under the feet of the victors. The ones who wanted to wipe out the primitive natives of this world and use it to rejuvenate or replace our own. Only a few dozen of the combatants had survived the fight, and most of them had retreated back to have a healer fix their gems. The intact gems on the ground were being gathered, forced into magical prisons by having their gem bound as a power source to…well, anything magical. It was common practice from the wars I'd seen in the past. Some would be allowed free later, others would be condemned to death when their gems eventually shattered. The process had sickened me then, and it did now. I was too slow to save a blue Gem on the edge of the battleground when the ones below saw her. Her physical form vanished, and her teardrop shaped gem was bound to the back of a mirror.

That was when something I really hadn't expected happened. Four gems that I'm fairly sure anyone would recognize appeared on the lesser warp a few feet from the Galaxy Warp, which hadn't been locked down yet. They moved as a unified front, taking the remaining Gems by complete surprise. They were too late to save any of the observers that hadn't been smart enough to run, and all of the gems left behind had been bound. I saw what they were setting up along the Warp, and couldn't abide by it. I had to reveal myself.

"Elder Rose Quartz," I stated, nodding at their leader. "Sister." That, directed at Garnet, my youngest living sister.

"Elder Melanite," her reply was guarded. To most, I was an unknown. An elder whose clan had followed him on an exodus from our homeworld, discovering Earth in the process. Who had brought with him a Crystal Heart. Who had built the Galaxy Warp to link this world to our home, to allow others of our kind onto this virgin planet, with its primitive natives who thought us like gods. And on whose hands every death in this war rested, even if he himself had refused to participate.

"You're going to destroy the Warp, aren't you?"

There was only a nod in response. Neither Rose nor myself had our weapons out, but her three subordinates had yet to dismiss theirs. They were looking nervously between the two of us, probably unsure of who to support. They were fiercely loyal to Rose and their cause, which was to protect humans without influencing them, but I was an Elder too. And Garnet was family. I'd played with her when she was young, taught her how to control her powers and emotions. And then I'd left her behind to start my own clan, subsequently finding Earth and giving her a cause. They didn't seem to trust my intentions, and a normal Gem didn't have any place in what they believed would be a fight between Elders.

"You know I can't let you do that, right?"

"Why not? Destroying this will end the war, will save humanity from the crossfire they've been caught in," that was Pearl's voice.

"Don't be naïve. The war won't end just because nobody can get home. Everyone will just fight harder once they're cut off from all hope of resupply and survival. Some might lash out at the humans because of your actions. And if they don't wipe each other out, or you don't finish them off at this stage, you'll have to deal with the corruption that follows. You three haven't seen what happens to people separated from a Crystal Heart for too long. I have." I turned to Rose and continued, "So have you. Are you willing to doom our own people to this fate? Or will you share the Heart in your temple with the survivors, revive those you have imprisoned in their own gems, and risk a repeat of this entire war?"

Rose practically had to respond to that challenge. "It has to be done. We can't let any more Gems onto Earth, or we'll change the course of human history more than we already have. I won't let that happen."

"Then I see no way for us to work this out," I sighed. "I challenge you to single combat. One-on-one, to the death. Gems are off-limits."

"Agreed." She gestured for the others to move back as she summoned her sword and took up a position across from me. "I regret that it has to end this way."

"As do I," I replied, summoning my knives from the dual gems on my shoulders and dropping into a readied stance.

The fight was short, swift, and brutal. Within two minutes, Rose and I both were battered and bloodied, our physical forms near death. I'd gotten a myriad of cuts on her limbs and torso, she could only block so many of my quick slashes with her blade, but that didn't matter in the end. In a matchup of styles like this, all it took was one blow connecting to knock me out of the fight. I relied on not being there when a strike connected, whittling my enemies away with a rain of small, painful blows or stabs into unprotected areas. Rose was the opposite. She focused on taking damage, and dishing it back out with interest. Her healing power let her use that to great effect.

My one mistake came when I took my eyes off the ground for a strike that would have made it impossible for her to fight further. I stepped on a mirror, the same one that the blue Gem from earlier had been bound to. Something crunched under my foot as I stumbled, and that was all the opening Rose needed. One slash of her sword and I was missing my right leg. I could have dissolved into the shadows and fled, but that had no place in a duel. Unable to dodge, my blades were knocked from my hands and I fell to my remaining knee, barely able to keep from falling flat.

"You win, Rose," I admitted. "Make of Earth what you will. Just don't lose sight of what truly matters."

She nodded once and gave a grim smile, which I returned. And then the blade arced down, and my awareness ceased to be.


	2. Chapter One

Being trapped in one's own gem is extremely frustrating. No awareness of the outside world, and absolutely no company of any sort. No perception of time. Every moment is an eternity, yet eternity itself could pass in the blink of an eye to a sealed Gem. Despite having two gems, myself, it was still the same monotony. Endless time to reflect on my own actions, to torment myself over what I could have done differently to prevent the bloodshed that tore my clan away from me. Add to that the fact that I could be killed at any time, not even knowing I was dead.

As such, it was immediately apparent when something shifted. Within moments of feeling the change, I was pulled forcibly from the gems. I was on one knee, fist pressed against the stone to support myself, in a position very similar to the one I'd been in when I'd died as I reformed. Looking up, I saw what seemed to be a surprised human child staring down at me. From the surroundings, including the vein from a Crystal Heart running down one wall, I was probably inside the Crystal Gem's temple.

"Who are you?" the boy asked, backing away slightly.

I stood and popped my neck before replying. "Elder Melanite of the Andradite clan. If anything's left of it, that is." I sighed in relief and stretched, flashing the boy a smile as I continued, "You have no idea how cramped it is inside these gems. Could you direct me to one of the Crystal Gems?"

The boy seemed to relax slightly, before puffing up with pride and exclaiming, "I'm a Gem!"

I blinked once at that. It was surprising, and at the same time mildly alarming. "There shouldn't be any younglings on this world…Rose has to have failed if there was enough power gathered to allow a new Gem life."

I didn't realize that I'd been thinking out loud until the boy went, "Huh?"

"My apologies, I was just thinking out loud," I replied. "Now, might I know your name? It's only fair since you know mine."

"I'm Steven!" I raised an eyebrow as he continued, "Steven Quartz Universe!"

"That's certainly an…unconventional name. Who's your clan Elder?" I was only half focusing on the conversation now, taking in my surroundings more thoroughly. There were bubbles floating all over the ceiling, filled with gems of a myriad of colors. I even recognized a few of them. Apparently Rose had put me into their prison after she'd won.

"Uhhh…clan Elder? My mom's Rose Quartz, but she's not really around anymore. I guess Garnet is the closest thing we have to a leader, if that's what you mean."

It took me a few seconds to process that information. "Rose is dead?"

The boy sniffled as he replied, "Yeah. She gave up her physical form to make me and passed down her gem. I never even got to meet her."

"She gave up her gem?" I questioned, getting just a nod in reply and a flash of the gem hidden under the boy's shirt. "This world must really have changed if she thought it was safe enough to leave to just the other Crystal Gems."

He didn't really seem to know what to make of that statement. So he just asked a question of his own.

"Why were you in one of the bubbles? Only monsters and bad people are supposed to be in them."

I took a second to think on my reply. "Rose and I had a bit of a disagreement quite some time ago. We settled it honorably in a duel, and I suppose she never saw fit to let me out. I honestly can't blame her, with the reputation I had among the Gems." I paused and sighed, "So the Gems inside these bubbles are monsters?"

"Yeah."

I shook my head and pointed out one, containing a green gem with a black line around it. "This was my daughter, the youngest of three. Born from the un-living gems of this world just after we landed, given life by my own blood and the energy of my own Crystal Heart. And now she and all the others I left behind are monsters, twisted almost irreparably by distance from our people's lifeblood. I warned Rose of this, yet she still let it happen."

"You mean the Centipeedle's your daughter?" I didn't understand the term, but nodded anyway. "But that would mean that it's a Gem…but Gems are supposed to be good."

I just ignored the confused look on his face, reaching out and setting a hand on his shoulder. Interestingly, my black gloves now had silver highlights. The changes from regeneration were odd, sometimes.

"Look, you seem like a good kid. I'm sure you'll be a great Gem some day, but for now you're in the way. It's obvious that the world has changed more than I was prepared for, and I can't have the Crystal Gems knowing I'm free, for the moment. Not until I learn more." Steven tensed as I spoke, trying to pull away. I just tightened my grip on his shoulder, not letting him move. Just as he started to try to scream for help, I brought up my other hand and settled it over his face.

Dark mist flowed from my left gem and down my arm, pooling in my palm and directly in front of Steven's face as I soothed, "Don't worry child. Just embrace the night and sleep. When you wake up, it will be as if none of this ever happened."

At the last word, his rather weak struggles stopped completely and he slumped to the floor, his breathing deep and even. It was good to know I still had my abilities in order. He was fine on the floor for now, and I needed to survey the gems in the bubbles. I probably didn't have a whole lot of time here, so I couldn't look through the temple for where more prisons would be stored. Sadly, the only gem I explicitly recognized here was that of my daughter Demantoid. As soon as I dispelled the bubble around her gem, she started to reform. I knew she was corrupted, however, and I wouldn't let her loose in that state. My own bubble replaced the one formerly around her, the dark grey sphere shrouding the gem from sight as I tucked it into my pocket.

"Soon, Daughter, soon," I whispered, a solitary tear dripping from my face and into the magma furnace I was standing by. Then I grabbed Steven and set off to find my way through the temple. It had changed a lot since I had helped Garnet install the Crystal Heart here, and was at the same time much more impressive and much sadder. Parts of the building were crumbling, strewn with rubble.

I didn't run into any of the Crystal Gems on the way up. Probably a good thing, considering I'd knocked out their youngest member and was carrying him around. Eventually, I found one of the doors leading out to the temple's entrance and its lesser warp. Surprisingly, there was a strange house built up around it. I recognized maybe a third of the things inside of it, and decided that this must be where Steven stayed. An untrained Gem inside of a temple like this was a bad thing. I sat the boy down on what I recognized as a bed.

After setting Steven down, I heard the distinctive sound of a warp activating and decided that I'd overstayed my welcome. It was twilight outside, that defining line between light and darkness that I thrived in, so it was easy to dissolve into the shadows and slip through the door. I hesitated for a moment on the wooden porch outside. My curiosity overcame my caution and I crept to the window, wanting to at least see what the Crystal Gems were in this new era.

There were just three inside, as there should be with Rose gone. Amethyst and Pearl had changed by a fairly significant margin, clothing-wise, but seemed to be largely the same as the Terrors of the Earth, as some had taken to calling the Crystal Gems during the war. Garnet had shifted significantly, however. Physically, she was mostly the same. But now she had her eyes covered, a cautious and wary manner replacing the playful sister I'd once known. Life had a way of doing that, especially with how she was one of the only four Gems who'd been alive and uncorrupted for what I suspected to be a very long time. She seemed to notice my stare, somehow, and turned to the window. I fled at that point, but not before catching sight of what had caused her changes. As she'd been talking to the others inside, she'd spread both hands out, revealing that each had a gem embedded in the palm. So she'd followed in her elder brother's footsteps, become a Kinslayer and claimed a second gem.

The town below was somehow lit up, glowing with harsh yellow light. It was obviously human, but very different from the mud-brick huts and wooden shacks I remembered. More evidence that I'd been gone for quite some time. In light like the town had, even with the shadows it scattered, I would be seen rather easily. So I shifted, my normal clothing being replaced by similar things to what Steven had been wearing, albeit enlarged and in my usual black color scheme. With my gems covered and my appearance shifted, it would be easy to hide out in the town once I familiarized myself with this new world. It would be a necessity, too. I highly doubted that any functioning Crystal Hearts were left outside of the Crystal Gems' temple, so I would have to stay within their area to have any hope of staying uncorrupted.

I walked into the first building I saw that didn't look like a private home, which had a large and oddly shaped sign spelling out "The Big Donut" atop it. I had no idea what that was. The gift of tongues might let a Gem understand, speak, read, and write any language, but it didn't guarantee comprehension of everything. The doors slid open on my approach, startling me slightly. Human technology was…strange.

"Oh come on, we were just about to close up!" a male voice from behind the counter at the far end of the room groaned. He was promptly elbowed by a smaller female.

"Be nice, Lars. It's just one customer." The female turned to me after that, smiling and saying, "How may we help you?"

"Could you direct me to somewhere where I may find lodging?" I asked, politely. "I've only recently arrived in town, and I have nowhere to stay."

"There's a decent hotel down along the boardwalk. It's usually only open in the summer, but it should be getting ready to open. They'll probably let you get a room early if you help set up."

"Thank you for your time." I nodded and left. I had an action plan forming in my head now. It would have to shift as I learned more, however.

"That guy just feels like trouble," the taller one complained. "He looks like a freak and sounds like one of those Gem weirdos Steven lives with."

A muffled grunt rang out as the doors started to slide shut, followed by, "Be nice! He's…" And then the door shut, and I couldn't hear them anymore.

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><p><em><strong>Author's Note: I've decided to do this story a bit different from my old ones. Most chapters will be shorter, between two-three thousand words instead of the 3-5 I prefer to do on other projects. <strong>_

_**What do y'all think so far?**_


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